The Bernie Scholarship Awards Programhttps://berniescholarships.org
Building a Better Community, One Scholarship at a TimeThu, 13 Dec 2018 04:16:33 +0000en-CAhourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=5.0.1https://berniescholarships.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/bernie.pngThe Bernie Scholarship Awards Programhttps://berniescholarships.org
3232BSAP Featured in Montgomery Magazinehttps://berniescholarships.org/bsap-featured-in-montgomery-magazine/
https://berniescholarships.org/bsap-featured-in-montgomery-magazine/#respondThu, 13 Dec 2018 04:12:29 +0000https://berniescholarships.org/?p=615The Bernie Scholarship Awards Program was featured in the November 2018 Newsletter of Montgomery Magazine, an online publication updated bi-monthly by Montgomery County Media Group and has a readership across Montgomery County in excess of 55,000. The newsletter is available here: http://www.montgomerymag.com/Emails_Newsletters/Nov18Newsletter/MM_Nov18Enews.html
]]>https://berniescholarships.org/bsap-featured-in-montgomery-magazine/feed/0BSAP Fall 2018 Newsletterhttps://berniescholarships.org/bsap-fall-2018-newsletter/
https://berniescholarships.org/bsap-fall-2018-newsletter/#respondMon, 19 Nov 2018 23:34:47 +0000https://berniescholarships.org/?p=603BSAP Fall 2018 Newsletter
]]>https://berniescholarships.org/bsap-fall-2018-newsletter/feed/0Check out the Bernie Brochure!https://berniescholarships.org/check-out-the-bernie-brochure/
https://berniescholarships.org/check-out-the-bernie-brochure/#respondSat, 17 Nov 2018 15:11:16 +0000https://berniescholarships.org/?p=600Click here to download.

]]>https://berniescholarships.org/check-out-the-bernie-brochure/feed/0BSAP Featured on County Cable Montgomeryhttps://berniescholarships.org/bsap-featured-on-county-cable-montgomery/
https://berniescholarships.org/bsap-featured-on-county-cable-montgomery/#respondTue, 13 Nov 2018 04:09:48 +0000https://berniescholarships.org/?p=595BSAP Board Members Nancy Scull and Sandy Smith were recently featured on Make a Difference, a program put together by County Cable Montgomery. The two discussed the Montgomery County Volunteer Center as well as the Bernie Scholarship Awards Program with the show’s host, Lorraine Driscoll.

]]>https://berniescholarships.org/bsap-featured-on-county-cable-montgomery/feed/0Donations Needed – BSAP Begins 2019 Campaignhttps://berniescholarships.org/donations-needed-bsap-begins-2019-campaign/
https://berniescholarships.org/donations-needed-bsap-begins-2019-campaign/#respondSun, 28 Oct 2018 01:03:00 +0000https://berniescholarships.org/?p=591The Bernie Scholarship Awards Program’s mission is to provide financial assistance for college or vocational training programs to graduating high school seniors and other adults who are low-income and live in subsidized rental housing in Montgomery County, Maryland. Our goal is to help our recipients achieve a better future, to rise above their challenging circumstances. The scholarship that we provide may literally be life-changing to a recipient and his/her family. Our awardees are so determined that 98% complete their degrees!

In September 2018, we kicked off another year for our program. We hope to assist more students and to provide higher award amounts in 2019. To do this, we need to raise more funds for scholarships that can be used for tuition, books, fees, computer equipment, transportation, and child care for deserving students. This is exciting and will have an incredibly positive impact on our potential awardees.

In 2018 we had the largest number of awardees ever in our 23-year history; we had 63 awardees, compared to a high of 39 awardees in prior years. In 2019 our goal is to assist even more students and to increase the award amount to $2,000.

If you are interested in more information on our nonprofit, please see www.berniescholarships.org or contact us at contact@berniescholarships.org. If you know someone who could benefit from our scholarship program, please share this information.

The following is an interesting article that contrasts a coach to a mentor. While coaching is important and needed to assist at the task level, a mentor is committed to building a long-term relationship to assist in the development of the individual. Building a relationship based on trust and guidance is key. We will share stories of some of these relationships that have been built through our program in future posts.

Please share our page and posts with your friends, family and contacts who may benefit from our work of awarding scholarships to qualifying Montgomery County residents.

]]>https://berniescholarships.org/did-you-know-bsap-provides-ongoing-mentoring/feed/026 Tips for Success in Collegehttps://berniescholarships.org/26-tips-for-success-in-college/
https://berniescholarships.org/26-tips-for-success-in-college/#respondSun, 16 Sep 2018 14:39:03 +0000https://berniescholarships.org/?p=574Recently, a post by Sophia Chua-Rubenfeld called, “How to Study Like a Harvard Student” has been making the rounds on the blogging site Tumblr. Sophia Chua-Rubenfeld is both a Harvard and Yale Law graduate and the daughter of infamous “Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother” author, Amy Chua. Studying for exams can sometimes be daunting, but if you pay attention, plan ahead, and study effectively, it will make a big difference in how confident you feel and how well you will perform. Read a paraphrased version of Sophia’s helpful tips below. You can find the original here.

Preliminary Steps

1. Choose classes that genuinely interest you – that way studying won’t feel like such a drag.
2. Make friends. See steps 12, 23, 24.

General Principles

3. Study less, but study better.
4. Avoid Autopilot Brain at all costs.
5. Vague is bad. Vague is a waste of your time.
6. Write it down.
7. Sometimes it can be rough, but buckle down and get it done.

Plan of Attack Phase I: Class

8. Show up to class. Everything will make a lot more sense that way, and you will save yourself a lot of time in the long run.
9. Take notes by hand. It is better for learning and retention and is less distracting than taking notes on a computer.

Phase II: Study Time

10. Get out of the library. The sheer fact of being in a library doesn’t fill you with knowledge. 8 hours of Facebooking in the library is still eight hours of Facebooking. Study without sacrificing your quality of life by quizzing yourself while still doing everyday tasks like eating or showering.
11. Do a little every day, but don’t let it be your whole day. “This afternoon, I will read a chapter of something and do half a problem set. Then, I will watch an episode of my favorite TV show and go to the gym” ALWAYS BEATS “Starting right now, I am going to read as much as I possibly can…oh wow, now it’s midnight, I’m on page five, and have done nothing for 6 hours.”
12. Give yourself incentive. There’s nothing worse than a gaping abyss of study time. If you know you’re going out in 6 hours, you’re more likely to get something done.
13. Self-care is important, but it can also be really tempting to take breaks when you really don’t need them. When you think about taking a break, try pushing through until you really need one.

Phase III: Assignments

14. Stop highlighting. Highlighting is supposed to keep you focused, but it’s actually a one-way ticket to Autopilot Brain. Write notes in the margins instead.
15. Do all your own work. You get nothing out of copying a problem set. If you don’t know how to solve the problem, attempt it anyways and review the answer key afterwards to help you understand what you did wrong.
16. Read as much as you can. No way around it. Stop trying to cheat with Sparknotes.
17. Be a smart reader, not a robot. Ask yourself: What is the author trying to prove? What is the logical progression of the argument? You can usually answer these questions by reading the introduction and conclusion of every chapter. Then, pick any two examples/anecdotes and commit them to memory (write them down). They will help you reconstruct the author’s argument later on.
18. Don’t read everything, understand everything that you read. Better to have a deep understanding of a limited amount of material than to have a vague understanding of an entire course. Once again: Vague is bad. Vague is a waste of your time.
19. If you do not understand an assignment, go to office hours. Ask for help. It will also help you get to know your professors, which is important for any letters of recommendation you may need to seek in the future.

Phase IV: Reading Period (Review Week)

20. Once again: do not move into the library. Eat, sleep, and bathe.
21. If you don’t understand it, it will probably be on the exam. Review your textbooks, ask your classmates, go to office hours, or looking it up on the internet.
22. Do all the practice problems.
23. You will be required to memorize formulas, names and dates. To memorize effectively: Stop reading your list over and over again. Say it out loud, write it down. Have your friends quiz you, then return the favor.
24. Ask your friends to listen while you explain a difficult concept to them. This forces you to articulate your understanding. Remember, vague is bad.
25. Go for the big picture. Try to figure out where a specific concept fits into the course as a whole. This will help you tap into Big Themes – every class has Big Themes – which will streamline what you need to know. You can learn a million facts, but until you understand how they fit together, you’re missing the point.

Phase V: Exam Day

26. Crush exam. Get A.

]]>https://berniescholarships.org/26-tips-for-success-in-college/feed/05 Healthy Recipes for College Studentshttps://berniescholarships.org/5-healthy-recipes-for-college-students/
https://berniescholarships.org/5-healthy-recipes-for-college-students/#respondSun, 16 Sep 2018 12:44:52 +0000https://berniescholarships.org/?p=570Good nutrition is an important part of leading a healthy lifestyle, but tuition is expensive, and schoolwork is time-consuming. As a student, eating in and saving money is the practical choice, but budgeting for groceries and finding time to cook can be difficult. Here are 5 easy and budget-friendly meals (which include ready-to-eat grocery store purchases) to get you through the semester!

Avocado Basil Pasta
Yield: 3 Servings
Prep Time: 5 Minutes
Cook Time: 10 Minutes
Ingredients:
• 9 ounces (255 grams) uncooked pasta
• 1 medium garlic clove
• 1/4 cup lightly packed fresh basil leaves, plus more for serving
• 1 to 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, to taste
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more if needed
• 1 ripe medium avocado, pitted
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• Lemon zest, for serving
Directions:
1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the package. For a lighter option, serve the avocado sauce with zucchini noodles.
2. While the pasta cooks, make the sauce: In a food processor, combine the garlic and basil and pulse to mince. Add the lemon juice, oil, avocado, and 1 tablespoon water and process until smooth, stopping to scrape down the bowl as needed. If the sauce is too thick, add a bit more oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
3. Drain the pasta and place it back in the pot. Add all of the avocado sauce and stir until combined. You can gently rewarm the pasta if it has cooled slightly, or simply serve it at room temperature.
4. Top with pepper, lemon zest, and fresh basil leaves, if desired.

Guacamole Grilled Cheese
Yield: 1 Serving
Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Cook Time: 5 Minutes
Ingredients:
• 2 slices of Bread
• ⅓ cup Guacamole (store bought or homemade)
• 5 Fresh sprigs of cilantro
• 2 slices of Tomato
• ⅓ cup Cheddar, shredded
• ½ tbsp Butter
Directions:
1. Take two slices of bread and place them on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Put some cheese on the bread, then add the cilantro and tomato (each on a different slice). Then top with more cheese.
2. Place the tray in the broiler just long enough for the cheese to melt, about 30 seconds or so. The key here is to melt the cheese, but don’t wilt the cilantro.
3. Remove the tray from the boiler and smear on some guacamole.
4. Add 1/2 tablespoon of butter to a skillet and melt it over a medium-high heat. Then place the assembled sandwich in the skillet and brown on both sides, melting the cheese further.

Most scholarships don’t have their applications available until late Fall or early Spring Semester of an applicant’s Senior Year. However, my advice is to stay actively engaged in the process.

Examples:

Reach out to the Scholarship board with questions in Junior year.

Have a friendly contact on the board who’ll answer those questions.

Routinely check updates on their websites and Facebook pages.

2. Stay organized.

The college application process can be already overwhelming without adding the stress of scholarship applications and the paperwork included. My advice is to stay organized with both processes from beginning to end.

Examples:

Have color-coordinated folders for each college and scholarship you’re applying to.

Use an agenda and colorful sticky-notes to remind yourself of daily activities and tasks.

Make a habit of having an active email account you’ll check daily to answer emails promptly.

3. Something I like to call CSS.

Commit yourself to the process.

Junior and Senior years are the two most stressful years of high school because of all the exams, homework and future decisions you have to do, but if you commit and apply yourself to achieving your goals, it’ll be rewarding when you make them a reality.

Stay positive and open-minded.

You may not get into your top university or receive the scholarship you really wanted, but things happen for a reason and hard work will eventually payoff. In the meantime, enjoy your Senior year and stay positive because things tend to work out for the best.

Surround yourself with supportive and responsible folks.

Count on teachers who’ll write recommendation letters and trust adults who’ll help you keep on track. Make friends who’ll accept you no matter if you end up in an Ivy League university, community college, trade school, or gap year.

In May 2018, The Bernie Scholarship Awards Program awarded a record-high 63 scholarships of $1,000 each to low-income residents of Montgomery County who reside in subsidized housing. Since its inception in 1995, $600,000 (524 scholarships) has been awarded to 474 scholars.

Those are the statistics of a successful and thriving program. However, it is the stories of The Bernie scholars themselves that are unique. Besides lacking the finances to further their education, many have challenging family situations that create a significant barrier requiring them to have a special determination, over and above the typical college student, to improve themselves.

Nancy Scull, who was recently elected Board Chair, has been connected for many years with the program both as a volunteer and through her work as Coordinator of the Family Self-Sufficiency Program at Montgomery County’s public housing agency, Housing Opportunities Commission. Having worked with the founder of the scholarship program, Bernie Tetreault, she is familiar with the history of the program and the students it assists.

“Many applicants to The Bernie Scholarships have not been strong students, often because they lack confidence in their ability to obtain a college degree and good employment, and they may not have thought much about their chances for college due to lack of funds and their everyday struggles to make ends meet,” says Scull.

“Some award recipients are the first in their family to complete a college degree,” she continues. “Many awardees have overcome unbelievable odds to achieve their goals. Their strength, determination, and resilience are remarkable, especially as they try hard not to give up on their goals. “

The overarching goal of The Bernie Scholarship program is to help break the cycle of poverty for its recipients and future generations. Obtaining a college education has been proven to be critical to raising people’s income. 98% of the program’s recipients complete their college degree.

“Learning is often very challenging and even frightening,” says Scull. “Our awardees often must make their way in life without support from family or friends. Many are single parents. They are committed to post-high school education but lack financial resources, and they struggle every day to make ends meet while balancing employment, studies, child care costs and schedules, and parenting their children.”

Scull says that the majority of scholarship recipients are employed during their academic years. Those seeking a career in a public service field are given priority for receiving a scholarship, as are adults over graduating high schoolers. Bernie Scholarship Board members mentor the awardees to help with problem-solving, encouragement and support, and to provide other resources that they need.

“Our awardees are very impressive, and we are proud of all of them. They model the importance of education for their children and make a difference for future generations.”

Here are profiles of some of our 2018 Bernie scholars. If you are inspired by these fine young people and would like to donate towards future scholarships, The Bernie Scholarship Awards Program isa component fund of the Greater Washington Community Foundation (GWCF), through the Community Foundation of Montgomery County, a subset of the 501(c)(3) GWCF. All donations payable to The Bernie Scholarship Awards Program are tax deductible.

The 2018 Scholars

Melvin Cooper III

Melvin says he’s always had a plan for what he wanted to do with his life. This fall, the Potomac native will enter his junior year at Broward College in Pompano Beach, Florida, working toward a Bachelor’s degree, and eventually a Master’s in Information Technology. He hopes to have the Master’s degree in three years. He earned his Associate’s degree this spring after achieving a 4.0 GPA for the semester, raising his overall GPA to 3.49.

His passion is Cyber Security. “The field allows me to make more money, and the job market is always increasing,” says Melvin. “I just wanted to do something that will always be there.” He is particularly proud of doing well in his coding class which he says was “so hard” that more than half the people dropped out before the end of the semester.

Nineteen-year-old Melvin has certainly beaten the odds. Brought up by a single mother, he is the third oldest of four children. His mother and father were divorced when Melvin was in elementary school. He says his father has not been present in his life. Not many in his family graduated from high school, so it was an achievement for him when he graduated from Winston Churchill High School in Potomac in 2016. He says his mother has always allowed him to make his own choices, but she always emphasized school as being the most important thing.

“My 84-year-old grandfather is an inspiration to me,” he says. “He’s worked his entire life. He started at a golf course as a caddy and carried three golf bags at the same time. A job in Cyber Security, which is not manual labor, would be much easier than his job. He loved his wife and took care of his family. It was super hard. He did everything he should.”

Melvin’s faith also plays a big part in his motivation to do well. He says the “degree is just the first part” of making a positive impact. In Potomac, Melvin used to volunteer at a recreation center working with and organizing activities for children ages 5-13.

Melvin received $1,000 in The Bernie scholarship money this year. It is his third Bernie Scholarship award. He covers the rest of his education by working part-time at the university.

The scholarship has had a huge impact on him. It has allowed him to focus on his studies without the pressure of lacking money for books and tuition. He says earning the scholarships means “I was diligent enough to understand the value of excelling in my education. I’d like to someday be able to give back to the program and provide for students like me.”

H. Sluyter

If you ask H. Sluyter what she is most proud of, “keeping her sanity” comes to the front of her mind. The two-time Bernie Scholarship recipient is the single mother of a nine-year old girl and a six-month old baby boy, she works full-time for the federal government and goes to school part-time at the University of Baltimore. It is a heavy load, but she says she will not give up her schooling.

Raised in Baltimore, the 29-year-old Sluyter is the oldest of three children. Her mother was also a single mother. “Being a single parent, raising a family on one income, is difficult,” she says. “When I first had my son, I remember breastfeeding him and doing homework, studying, and just being being happy I didn’t have to go to work because I was on maternity leave at the time. Emotionally, I try not to dwell on my challenges. When I do get down, I keep reminding myself where I came from, where I’m at now, and where I’m trying to go.”

Where she is eventually headed is into the world of corporate law. Sluyter says she finds litigation interesting and challenging and would like to work for a large company. Because of her obligations, she also needs a lucrative career. Recently, she took a macro-economics course, so she’s started thinking about international business or working as a corporate attorney for a company with offices in other countries.

She hopes her education, combined with her business and administrative experience, can make that goal a reality. She already has an Associate’s degree in Paralegal Studies from Montgomery College. By the fall, she will have earned an Associate’s degree in Business as well. Technically, she will be a senior next year. In a year and a half, she will earn her Bachelor’s degree in Business and then go on to law school. Her goal is to complete law school in three years.

Sluyter starting work at the age of 15. She says she’s worked at Kentucky Fried Chicken, Popeyes, Foot Locker, a call center, and a music store. The past two years she’s been working at the U. S. Department of Commerce. She was recently promoted to Division Office Manager. Due to her full-time employment, most of her classes are taken online and at night.

Her first Bernie Scholarship was awarded in 2017. While the Seneca Valley High School graduate has also received assistance through a federal Pell grant and other scholarships, Sluyter says she can only take as many classes “as her scholarships will allow.” That usually amounts to about three classes per semester. She says her income goes toward daycare ($430/week) and for living expenses such as her new home in Montgomery County.

“What motivates me is knowing that I can do better,” says Sluyter. “I want a better life for myself and my kids. When I start something, I have to finish it. I’ve established all these goals and when I knock them down, I set some more. I don’t have much of a support system. A lot of people depend on me.”

She says her mother focuses on her two younger siblings, and she’s happy that “she doesn’t have to worry about me.” “I keep reminding myself that it’s only me, and I have to play all these roles since I have two small children,” says Sluyter.

“I want to thank my friends,” she says. “They tell me they are proud of me and look up to me. Knowing that both my mother and father are college graduates has let me know that it is in me. They kind of set the standard.”

In Her Own Words(Excerpt from Sluyter’s speech given at the Awards Ceremony May 2018)

“So how do I do it? How do you make all this happen?

Starbucks

Strategic Time Management

Short-term sacrifices for my long-term dream

Late Nights

Persistence

Internal will to succeed and not give up on my investment

Dedication- reminding myself that these hurdles will soon be over and my classes would still be there

Being extremely resourceful

I was also very strategic when I asked others for help. The help I had was very limited, so I had to use it wisely.

Learning from my failures.

I’m going to tell you the same thing I tell them, you can do it too. If you’re dedicated and really want something, no one or anything will get in your way. I hope I inspired you. Keep your head up and do not give up.”

Bitseat Getaneh

Bitseat Getaneh had every reason to be dissuaded from pursuing her lofty dream of becoming a neurosurgeon. It was August 2016, her first day in the United States, and the then 16-year-old girl from Ethiopia was beginning a temporary stay in Maryland with her host couple. The plan was that she would soon leave Maryland and move to Oklahoma to attend boarding school.

But things didn’t go as planned. In the complex where she was staying, a natural gas explosion occurred killing her host couple, trapping her in the apartment. “As the flames expanded, I rushed to the exit door through the collapsing apartment, trying to save my life,” says Getaneh. “I ran from one corner to the other. I felt the flames burning my face, but I still couldn’t find the door. I started praying out loud, ‘Please, God, save me!’ After a few seconds, I found myself outside the apartment. I still don’t remember how I got there, and I did not yet know that both my hosts did not escape but passed away in the apartment that night.”

Her body was covered with third-degree burns. She was hospitalized and unable to attend high school for four months. She never made it to Oklahoma. Her mother left her husband and three other children to come to the United States to help nurse Bitseat back to health. Most of her family remains in Ethiopia.

Move forward almost two years after the tragedy. In June of this year, Bitseat graduated from Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School with a GPA of 3.86. This fall she will begin her freshman year at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania pursuing her dream to become a neurosurgeon.

“I’ve wanted to do this since I was a little girl. I want to learn more about the features of the brain. My uncle had a stroke and he was badly injured. He fell at work, but he survived it. That experience has pushed me toward this field.”

Bitseat says that in Ethiopia she did not have the freedom to choose her profession. “The government would have administered a test and told me I had to study the occupation they preferred. If they’d decided I needed to become an engineer, I wouldn’t have been happy. In order to become a neurosurgeon, I had to come to the United States.”

Not only has she been awarded her first Bernie Scholarship, but she was also awarded a Posse Foundation Leadership Scholarship. Out of 1500 applicants, Bitseat says she was one of only 50 to receive this prestigious scholarship, which pays for her full tuition.

When she graduated from high school last month, Bitseat says her mother was very proud of her. Her mother does not speak English, so Bitseat has had to do the grocery shopping, make sure rent is paid on time, and translate for her. “There are a lot of Ethiopian people in Silver Spring so she won’t be alone. It’s going to be hard to be apart from her.”

She thanks her mom for the sacrifice she made leaving Ethiopia and the rest of her family. “I’ve been through a lot,” she says. “I have to pursue this education and make them proud. My host family passed away because of the fire, so I have to make them proud too. I have to make something of myself.” After she gains experience in the United States, she hopes to eventually return to Ethiopia where there is a dearth of neurosurgeons.

In Her Own Words(Excerpt from speech given at the Award Ceremony May 2018)

“I read a quote by Charles R. Swindoll that says, ‘Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.’ That’s when I started to understand that everything happens for a reason. God was trying to show me that death is imminent and that I should embrace life like there is no tomorrow. People should always look forward to the future and not dwell on the pain they faced.

Every individual has a story to tell, and I hope my story motivates you to think that life is a valuable thing to hold on to and that every day counts. Even though I had a rough start, that will not decide where my future takes me. I will be attending Bucknell University in the fall of 2018 with a full tuition scholarship. I will use this (Bernie) scholarship money to pay for my room and board. This second chance I’ve been given by God, I want to use it to make Him happy and be His channel to help people. I want to conclude by saying that wherever life takes you, you must have the courage to stay stronger than your struggles. Don’t let it drown you.”

Tayla Brawner

Sometimes in life, one has no choice but to rise to the challenge. Two-time Bernie scholarship recipient Tayla Brawner has done just that. This fall, she will enter her junior year at Trinity Washington University in Washington, D.C. By the end of 2020, she will have earned her Associate’s degree in Occupational Therapy and a Bachelor’s degree in Child Psychology. She will then work toward earning her Master’s degree in Occupational Therapy.

When she walked across the graduation stage at Springbrook High School in Silver Spring, she was three months pregnant. With many incomplete tasks and personal challenges, she came to a concrete decision on exactly how she would overcome her fear of failure. A couple of months later she was attending Trinity Washington College. At the end of her first semester at Trinity, she gave birth to Madison, who is now seventeen months old.

“Having a child was more of a motivation than a barrier as many thought,” says Tayla. “God has placed Madison in my life as a wonderful blessing. She makes me very happy! As she grows, I want to be able to supply all her needs. That’s why I’m beyond dedicated to working my hardest at anything in order to succeed past my goals in life just so I know I’ve done my part for her as a mother.”

Tayla is a hard worker and has become independent over the last two years with great confidence. She has worked since she was in 9th grade. Last year, she worked two jobs and is currently working part-time at Shopper’s Food Warehouse. She is hoping to find work in an office, preferably as a receptionist or in data entry, while she’s in school full-time this year. At school, she has made the Dean’s List for two semesters. She also had a 3.5 GPA in high school, was a cheerleader for four years and participated in gymnastics as well as track and field.

As a little girl growing up, Tayla watched registered nurses come to her grandmother’s house and help her with her daily tasks such as taking her medications, exercising, eating healthy food, and even working on fine motor skills in her hands. “Seeing constantly how these individuals made a huge impact on my grandmother motivated me to want to do something that will help individuals maintain a happy, peaceful, and independent lifestyle with no limitations or restrictions when it comes to their physical, mental, and emotional state,“ says Tayla, who hopes to run her own practice some day.

“In junior high school, my counselor introduced me to many different jobs that were structured around helping people,” she continued. “Jumping from becoming a pediatrician to a registered nurse, I came across occupational therapy. After researching and watching countless videos of what it means to be an Occupational Therapy Assistant, right then and there I knew this would be a career that I’d be passionate about. Occupational Therapy is more than just a career but a great opportunity to make a memorable impact, whether big or small, on the lives of many individuals and their families.”

Tayla says she has never had a mentor, although she gives thanks to many who have pushed and helped her along the way, both prior to and after her pregnancy. She has not known anyone in her family to go to college other than her mother, though she is pushing her brother, Tyler, to expand his education. Tayla has been able to afford college through The Bernie Scholarships and a scholarship from Trinity College, which she keeps by maintaining her G.P.A. above 3.3 and going to school full-time.

She is proud of earning her Bernie Scholarship. “Thanks to Bernie (Tetreault),” she says. “He wanted to help those who are trying to make a way for themselves in the wake of many obstacles. It’s not only a good opportunity for me, but for others in the community because he wasn’t only helping the wealthy. They weren’t giving that scholarship to anyone. They gave it to those who are hard-working and focused.”

“I’m very outgoing and dedicated to my work,” she adds. “I do have a child, and she’s growing with me. I am truly blessed.”

In Her Own Words(Excerpt from speech given at the Award Ceremony May 2018)

“First off, I would like to thank God who has stood beside me through many trials and tribulations and has never failed me. I remember just like it was yesterday …. walking across the stage graduating from high school three months pregnant with my beautiful daughter, Madison. So many emotions were coming and going that day … from deciding whether or not I was ever going to go to college, to being a great mother, to thinking about pickles and cold cut sandwiches.

Fast forward to now, two years later … a current junior student at Trinity Washington University with less than two years to go before I earn my Associate’s degree in Occupational Therapy and a Bachelor’s degree. No, it wasn’t easy, but it was definitely possible and worth it. I have been through so much and I’m pretty sure you all have been through tough times as well, but it does get better.

Galatians 6 verse 9 says, ‘Let us not become weary in doing good for at the proper time, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.’ With persistence, drive, courage, and resiliency you’ll go so many places you’ve never dreamed of.

To Madison, I am so thankful to be your mother because you have pushed me to higher means, to want more out of life, and not to settle for anything less than what I deserve. ‘Mommy is doing it all for you. I love you.’”